LOST UP THE CHIMNEY

Evening Star, Issue 19274, 12 June 1926, Page 19

LOST UP THE CHIMNEY

Coal made Britain what she is today, and coal will yet save her, writes Mr Lancelot Lawton, in tho ‘ London Magazine.’ For some years scientists have been endeavouring to discover its secrets, and, above all, have been searching for processes that would result in its being put to wiser uses. Millions of pounds have been spent upon this nest. In this country experiments have been mainly concentrated upon the distillation of coal: the heating (or baking) of it in air-tight retorts. That is easily to be understood. We originated the gas industry which distils coal at high temperature, so as to produce as much gas as possible. By this process all volatile matter is removed from tho coal; and tho residue is coke, which is unsuitable for burning in the domestic grate. A certain amount of tar is also produced, but it is of a non-petroleum character. Quite different results are obtained when the process is earned out at a lower temperature—lower but sufficiently high to reach a red-hot beat. On an average, for every ton of coal distilled (or carbonised! 16cwt of smokeless fuel, sixteen gallons of oil, and a quantity of gas or high calorific value arc yielded. The smokeless fuel has a silvery appearance, and resembles coke more than coal, but unlike coke it is free burning, and has no unpleasant smell. It soon ignites; gives a bright blue smokeless flame, and radiates far more heat than docs ordinary coal. But its greatest merit is that it creates no smoke, no soot. Concerning the tar (or oil) produced, little is known except that it is superior to gasworks tar, inasmuch as it is of a petroleum-like character; it is known, moreover, to contain chemical compounds of a valuable order, only some of which have so far been definitely ascertained. . And. finally, there is the gas, which is of a richer quality than gas produced in the gasworks. In a word, this method (or principle) of low-temperature distillation produces three smokeless fuels from coal—-semi-coke, as it is called, oil, and gas. Nothing is wasted, whereas under the present primitive methods of using coal, so one well-known expert (Robert Hunter) tells -us, we are dispersing into the air valuable products, motor spirit, illuminating and fuel oils, lubricating oils, and pitch to the value of £154,000,0CX) annually. "